


Second Chance With The Best Man

by JNS



Category: Wynonna Earp (TV)
Genre: F/F, MillsandBoonAU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-16
Updated: 2019-07-16
Packaged: 2020-06-29 17:34:24
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,952
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19835191
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JNS/pseuds/JNS
Summary: There was never any question as to who would be Wynonna's maid of honour when she and Dolls' decided to tie the knot but Dolls didn't have quite so simple a choice ahead of when it came to his best man. Thankfully his bride-to-be couldn't care less about tradition, it made his decision a hell of a lot easier but it seemed it wasn't about to win him any favours with his future sister-in-law.-MillsandBoonAU-





	Second Chance With The Best Man

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, how is everybody doing now that S4 is FINALLY been confirmed? It feels like it's been forever since I posted anything! 
> 
> This is just a fun little one shot for the MillsandBoonAU thing that [Lucky](https://twitter.com/LuckyWantsTo) and [Mhairi](https://twitter.com/HaughtToScot) came up with.
> 
> I started this before I left for Earp Expo and my little jaunt around North America but it's taken me this long to post it because I've had a creative explosion since Expo. Hopefully that means it won't be too long before I start posting one of the multi-chapter fics I'm working on :) 
> 
> Happy reading!

Wynonna had _never_ been one for tradition.

She’d walked away from running the family business after her father died, letting Waverly take the reins-- she was in fact the smart one.

She’d refused to marry the father of her child just because everyone, including him, said she should. They were not in love…never had been, and she was not about to raise their child in an unhappy home, just because people might look down on her for being an unwed mother.

She realised she had fallen hard for her former boss not long before she was due, and where others may have waited or even forgotten about it altogether, for fear of scaring him off with another man’s baby in the picture, she went for it. 

She laid it all on the line, she told Dolls that it had been there pretty much from the start…and it turned out, he had been waiting until the baby was born to tell Wynonna how he felt so he didn’t risk overwhelming her.

Now, three years later, their little family was going to become _official_ official, and when Dolls wondered aloud if having his best friend as best man would be too unconventional, Wynonna made sure he knew she was all for it. 

Wynonna had only met her once before at the engagement party, and Nicole seemed like she could, and likely would, absolutely kill it in a tux. 

Waverly had gotten all weird when Wynonna had mentioned it during one of Waverly’s billion planning meetings for the occasion; she figured it was smart to give her sister fair notice of who would be standing across from her on the big day, and she certainly hadn’t anticipated the reaction she got.

Usually Waverly appreciated sticking a middle finger to tradition as much as Wynonna did, so she was simply going to have to deal with it since Dolls confirmed that Nicole was in and couldn’t be more excited. Anyway, Wynonna was sure she’d seen them getting along just fine at the engagement party, Waverly got along with everyone.

Waverly had handed over all duties at the bar to her assistant manager for the weekend, picked up her dresses from the dry cleaners _and_ still had three hours to spare before the rehearsal dinner. She honestly was still surprised Wynonna had agreed to go through with, considering the groan she’d let out when Waverly’d first suggested it. All she had left to do before she could start getting ready was head out to the homestead and follow up on the cryptic wedding emergency text Wynonna had sent.

There were far more cars out front than Waverly was expecting when she arrived, she had to park way over by the barn. Alice ran out the front door and onto the porch as she made her way towards the house, jumping up and down in place until Waverly was at the bottom of the steps and she could leap into her arms.

“Auntie Wave!” Alice squealed in Waverly’s ear as she spun her niece around. “Gramma’s here!”

“She is?!” Waverly feigned surprise, having seen Gus that morning when she stopped by her apartment. That didn’t explain all the other cars, and Waverly’s curiosity couldn’t wait. “Well let’s go see her then, huh?”

Alice led the way once Waverly had set her down; she could hear laughter and multiple voices coming from the kitchen. She was met with a number of faces she didn’t recognise and only a few that she did. Gus was standing with a stressed looking Wynonna while Dolls laughed heartily with a man who had an arm slung around his shoulders, and every seat at the dinner table was occupied.

“Baby girl!” Wynonna noticed her presence and rushed over. Alice latched onto her mother as soon as she was close enough and Wynonna hoisted her up onto her hip. “So, there’s been a slight change of plans. A bunch of Dolls’ old friends decided to show up _without_ RSVP-ing.”

Wynonna had a fake smile plastered on her face as she gestured around the room, speaking just loud enough for Waverly to hear. Waverly’s eyes widened in disbelief, no wonder Wynonna looked so stressed.

“I’ve managed to add the extra seating for tonight _and_ tomorrow but…we need every bed in the house, so I really need you not to stay here tonight like we planned and…”

“And?” Waverly could already feel where this was heading and she was not sure she liked the sound of it.

“Can you put someone up for a couple of nights?”

Wynonna grimaced, she knew Waverly’s apartment was tiny and she had to know that Waverly wouldn’t be keen on having some stranger staying with her. Even if they were an old friend of her future brother-in-law.

“You know I wouldn’t ask if I had any other option, Waves.”

A knock at the front door interrupted Waverly’s attempt to suggest another option, _any_ other option but when a familiar face walked in hesitantly, following a call to “come on in”, all possible alternatives drained from her mind.

“Nicole, just in time!” Wynonna pulled her in for a slightly awkward hug, Alice getting a little squished between them, as Waverly did her best not to make eye contact.

She’d done a great job of pretending she wasn’t going to have to see Nicole tonight _or_ tomorrow at the wedding…now it was all she could think about.

“I was just telling Waves here about the change of plans, you don’t mind, do you?”

Nicole managed to catch Waverly’s eye, her easy-going smile the exact opposite of how Waverly felt right now. “Of course not, I left my bags in the car so I’m ready to get going whenever.”

“Wait…what is happening?” Waverly’s brain was screaming at her that she already knew, that her sister had somehow orchestrated this whole thing just to torture her…even though that was impossible since Wynonna had no idea what had happened…

“Nicole’s going to stay with you. You didn’t think I’d bunk you with one of them, did you?” Wynonna jerked her thumb towards Dolls’ buddies as a chorus of “heys!” erupted from the table. “No offence boys, but my baby sis is off limits this weekend. Y’hear?”

Waverly’s cheeks had to be an embarrassing shade of pink, and when she unfortunately caught Nicole’s eye as she was hugging Dolls hello, there was a slight hue to her face as well. She had to get herself…and Nicole, out of there.

“Okay…let’s go.” Waverly nodded to Nicole and headed for the door. She stopped in front of Alice and stroked a hand through her hair, promising to be there for a big pre-wedding breakfast in the morning just like they had planned. 

She didn’t look behind her as she left the house, assuming Nicole was following along behind, and only turned back to check halfway to her car and what she guessed was Nicole’s.

Nicole was right behind her, and Waverly had to quickly step back to stop herself from stumbling right into her.

“You okay to just follow behind my car?”

“Sure.” Nicole looked at her with that damned calm and confident smile.

Waverly had no idea how she was going to survive the next couple of days. 

Nicole could barely grip the steering wheel, she was sweating so bad. She had told Wynonna on the phone that this new plan was totally fine by her, but the moment she saw Waverly she realised how wrong she had been.

She didn’t know why she thought she could handle this, she hadn’t been able to get Waverly out of her head since the engagement party…

Realistically, it should have been easy to get over her…especially when Waverly made it clear that what had happened was simply a drunken mistake. 

But getting over Waverly after just one kiss was harder than she ever imagined…it had been an unbelievable kiss though. Nicole had stood positively dumbstruck after Waverly had run away, with an insistent pounding between her thighs that didn’t go away completely until a very _very_ cold shower that night.

Now she had to spend two nights in Waverly’s apartment…she would just try and keep to herself as much as possible, pretend like she hadn’t spent multiple nights wondering what would have happened if Waverly had just kept kissing her…if Waverly had only felt the same way she did.

The blinking of Waverly’s turn signal snapped Nicole out of her musings, as they turned right into an apartment complex. Nicole readied herself to exude a calm and unaffected demeanour. She would only make Waverly feel awkward if she acted like the kiss was still something she thought about. 

Waverly led Nicole up to her apartment in relative silence, only speaking to let her know which floor she lived on. 

“I’ll make up the couch and you can have my bed.” Waverly announced once they were both inside. She busied herself with removing a dress from one of the garment bags she’d carried upstairs, and Nicole immediately couldn’t wait to see Waverly in it. 

“Do you need to shower before the rehearsal?”

“I actually could,” Nicole admitted, she didn’t exactly feel clean after a day of travelling. “And I really don’t mind taking the couch, I know me staying here wasn’t what you were expecting this weekend.”

“Nicole, you are about a foot too tall to _ever_ be comfortable on that thing.” Waverly laughed with a tiny shake of her head. Nicole’s lips turned up at the beautiful sound, before she chastised herself the thought. “I’m going to get ready, everything you’ll need is in the bathroom.”

Nicole had been struggling with not simply staring at Waverly since the moment she left the bathroom, all ready for the rehearsal dinner. It was the sweetest torture…but it was still, without a doubt, torture.

Waverly looked… _incredible_ and she hadn’t even seen what she would be wearing to the actual ceremony yet. She could only imagine how magnificent that outfit was going to be.

At the rehearsal dinner Nicole tried to keep herself distracted, speaking to as many different guests as she could. The whole situation was just so similar to the engagement party, where she had tried to get to know all of the new people in Dolls’ life…except this time it was clear that Waverly was avoiding her.

They’d practically been joined at the hip in that exact room eight months ago. Now if Nicole got anywhere near, Waverly would quickly find someone or something that needed her attention elsewhere.

The drinks that Wynonna kept passing Nicole’s way weren’t helping her forget either, with every sip she just wanted to talk to Waverly _more._ To be safe, she made sure to drink just enough to appease Wynonna before discarding them or else she knew she’d open her mouth and make things more awkward than they already were.

As the night drew to a close, Nicole lost the battle with herself. She knew she would the moment she started mentally rehearsing what she wanted to say to Waverly. No matter how worried she was that she might make things worse, she had to be sure things weren’t going to be _this_ awkward for the remainder of her time here.

It was her best friend’s wedding, and she was supposed to come away with only good memories.

Waverly didn’t bother making eye contact when she quietly thanked Nicole for holding the door open for her after Dolls’ dropped them off. If Nicole hadn’t spoken to him during the ride, it would have been completely silent for the duration.

Nicole just didn’t get it…how could they go from getting along so well the first time they’d met, like they’d been friends for years, to barely talking at all. All because of a stupid drunken kiss?

The moment that the apartment door closed, Nicole’s patience vanished. She had to know what Waverly’s problem was.

“Okay, what did I do?”

“What?”

“What did I do?” Nicole repeated. “I know you regret kissing me, but was it really so bad that we can’t even be friends?”

Waverly just stared at her, her mouth opening and then closing again.

“Jesus, Waverly. You think you’re the first straight girl to kiss me after a few drinks?”

Nicole huffed, loosening the tie around her neck before yanking it off. She felt dumb thanks to her feelings before, now she felt totally idiotic. Falling for another straight girl who would never reciprocate her feelings and apparently couldn’t even stand to be her friend either.

“I get it, okay? You were drunk, and you’re embarrassed, but kissing another woman is hardly the worst thing in the world.”

“I know it’s not!” Waverly shouted, taking Nicole, and it seemed like herself, by surprise. She took a breath before repeating, at a more appropriate level. “I know it’s not…and I’m sorry.”

“For what?” Nicole laughed humorlessly. “Kissing me in the first place, or for acting like I’m barely worth your time afterwards?”

She knew which one she would prefer, but she was sure Waverly was likely apologizing for both. She wished that kissing Waverly wouldn’t have made a difference to her feelings, but she knew the truth…

Kiss or not, Nicole would still be a goner for Waverly Earp.

“You know I was really looking forward to seeing you, Waverly?” Nicole kept talking since Waverly seemed to be stuck in silence. There was no way she could possibly make this worse. “I thought maybe you’d be over the embarrassment and even though you clearly didn’t enjoy the kiss as much as I did, we would still be able to have fun this weekend-- as friends.”

“I’m sorry I ran away, okay?!” Waverly blurted out, her eyes widening in turn with Nicole’s at the admission.

“W-what?”

“I’m sorry I ran away…” Waverly repeated, quietly. Her eyes were cautious as she took slow steps towards Nicole, and Nicole was certain she forgot how to breathe for a moment. “I enjoyed it…I did, but I got scared.”

Nicole swallowed thickly, Waverly was mere inches away and only getting closer. “Scared?” 

“Yeah,” Waverly looked directly into her eyes and Nicole could see it, the fear. 

Nicole smiled softly, hoping that it would help Waverly realise she had nothing to be scared of. Waverly’s breathing slowly evened out and Nicole reached out to cup her cheek, caressing it lightly with her thumb. Waverly leaned into the touch, her eyes slipping closed as she savoured the sensation.

“I’m only embarrassed about how I acted afterwards and I...” Waverly opened her eyes, the fear was still lingering in their depths, but Nicole could see something else there now too, resolve. “I’d like a second chance…to not run away.”

For a moment, Nicole thought about asking Waverly if she was sure, if this was really something that she wanted but the look in her eyes told Nicole everything she needed to know. Waverly wanted this…Waverly wanted her.

With what Nicole was sure was a giant grin, she pulled Waverly closer by the waist. Her arms went around Nicole’s neck, her fingers working their way into Nicole’s hair as she moved slowly towards her lips.

Waverly shook her head, her eyes focussed solely on Nicole’s lips. “I’m so sorry I was scared of this.”

“You promise not to run out of your own apartment?” Nicole smirked, her lips just a hairsbreadth away from Waverly’s.

“I promise,” Waverly nodded seriously right before capturing Nicole’s lips in a kiss that blew their first out of the water.

Waverly couldn’t stop smiling.

She would have felt ridiculous if it weren’t for Nicole not being able to stop either. Waverly closed her eyes as Nicole ran a thumb across her bottom lip, the sensation had her reeling all over again.

“Are you sure you’ve never done that before?”

“I’m sure I would’ve remembered,” Waverly laughed, pressing herself closer to Nicole, their skin meeting in even more places.

This wasn’t how she thought her night was going to go at all…not even when their passionate kisses had them heading towards Waverly’s bed. 

She thought maybe some heavy making out, but as soon as Nicole’s thigh had pressed into her _just right,_ Waverly’s hunger proved harder to ignore than she thought possible. Thankfully, Nicole had been right there with her.

“We really should get some sleep.” Nicole groaned, even as she ran the tip of her nose along Waverly’s before moving in for a kiss.

It had to be well into the early morning by now…and they both had so much to do later for the wedding.

“Just five more minutes.” Waverly begged desperately against Nicole’s lips, pushing her onto her back and rolling herself on top.

Nicole would be gone soon, back to the city and Waverly had no idea when they would see each other again…or if Nicole would even want that.

“Alice! You need to eat your breakfast.” Wynonna ran a frustrated hand down her face, she didn’t have time for this today. 

She was sure as hell going to find the time to chew Waverly out later though.

“Wave said she was coming.” Alice pouted, probably…Wynonna couldn’t see her face since it was glued to the window.

“I know she did…but she must have slept through her alarm.” Wynonna hung up on another unanswered call with a frown.

Obviously, she hoped her sister was alive and well above all else, but _goddammit_ she was mad at Waverly for disappointing Alice like this after promising to be here.

“Alice, I’m sorry but I need you to eat so we can start getting ready, it’s a big day remember?”

“I know, daddy and momma are gonna dance,” Alice turned to look at her, she hadn’t quite grasped the concept of what today meant but that’s what cameras were for; she was hardly likely to remember it once she got older anyway.

“Yes, we’re gonna dance…but we also have things to do before we’re allowed to do that part. Like walk down the aisle just like we practiced…and pretend that we like daddy’s cousins.”

Wynonna muttered the last part, Alice could no longer be trusted with her secrets. Not since she started repeating every damn thing that came out of Wynonna’s mouth.

“So, I need you to be a clever girl and eat your breakfast. I’ll call Auntie Waverly and see where she is. Okay?”

“Okay,” Alice huffed, finally peeling her attention fully off the driveway to shuffle towards her seat.

Wynonna tried Waverly’s cell one more time, she should have been there over an hour ago and there was no chance that Wynonna was going to be able to get ready for today without her sister’s perfectly timed schedule. Waverly’s planning skills were the only reason Wynonna thought she could even pull this wedding off.

“Shit! I am so so _so_ sorry!” Waverly finally answered and rushed out the apology. “My alarm-“

“I’m not the one you need to apologise to…”

“Crap…she waited for me?”

“What do you think?”

Wynonna was furious, but she blew her anger out with a slow deep breath. She was going to read Waverly the riot act for disappointing Alice, but not today. Today was supposed to be a happy day, for all of them.

“Just get here as soon as you can, and make sure Nicole is awake! Dolls left half an hour ago with the guys.”

“S-sure…yeah, I’ll go check.” Waverly sounded…off.

Were her and Nicole still being weird around each other? They had barely spoken at the rehearsal dinner…Wynonna thought Nicole staying with her would be fine considering how well they seemed to get on the first time they met. Had she forced this situation on Waverly?

“Everything okay between you two? You would have told me if you really didn’t want her to stay with you, right?”

“Y-yeah…we’re g-good.” Waverly didn’t sound convincing in the least. “I need to get ready, I’ll be there soon. I promise!”

“Oka-” Wynonna let the word die on her tongue as she realised Waverly had hung up on her before she could even say goodbye.

She was lucky Wynonna loved her so damn much.

Waverly’s voice strained as Nicole’s smiling lips met her skin just below her navel.

“Nicole…we can’t,”

Nicole knew she had been cruel, making her way down Waverly’s body while she was on the phone, but she couldn’t help herself. The moment she woke up and realised the night before hadn’t been a dream, all she wanted to do was take Waverly apart all over again.

Nicole placed a trail of kisses down towards Waverly’s center and despite her protests, she could see how much Waverly wanted this. The lip between her teeth, the frantic rise and fall of her chest as her breath quickened. 

Nicole smirked, “Are you sure?”

“N-no…” Waverly admitted with groan. “But I already missed breakfast with Alice…and I don’t know that I’ll be able to stop any time soon if we start again.”

Waverly carded her fingers through Nicole’s hair, she urged her to come back up to the top of the bed. Nicole obliged, begrudgingly, but only because Waverly was unfortunately right. They wouldn’t be able to keep it short.

Nicole huffed as her head hit the pillow next to Waverly. “How long until we can get back into this bed?”

Her frustration was only mildly serious…as was her assumption that they would in fact end up back in bed together. She hoped, of course, but she wasn’t going to take it for granted just because it had happened the once.

“Not soon enough,” Waverly had the most adorable pout on her lips and Nicole just had to kiss her. She wanted to be with Nicole again…but what about after tonight, or after this weekend…what then?

Nicole deepened the kiss, if she only had this short time with Waverly then she wasn’t going to waste it. Would she even be able to kiss her again until they were back in Waverly’s apartment? It would be incredibly hard not to do so now that Nicole’d had a taste, but maybe Waverly would be alright with it.

“Later…at the reception, how would you feel if I kissed you…in public?”

Nicole regretted asking as soon as the words had left her mouth, the panic in Waverly’s eyes said everything; Waverly wasn’t ready for that. 

She couldn’t pretend it didn’t hurt…she just tried not to take it personally, this time.

“Don’t worry about it, forget I even asked.” Nicole tried to get up and out of the bed but arms wrapped around her from behind, Waverly’s chin rested on her shoulder.

Waverly kissed her neck, her hold loosening as Nicole sank back onto the bed a little. “I’m sorry…” Her lips caressed Nicole’s skin over and over, and her whole body relaxed under Waverly’s attention. “I just don’t know how I’d feel, honestly…until yesterday I was still in denial about how I felt about you.”

“It’s okay, Waverly.” Nicole sighed, it wasn’t what she wanted but it wasn’t the end of the world. At least _she_ knew there was something between them.

“Can we…play it by ear?”

“Sure, Waverly. Whatever you want…” Nicole tried to smile as she turned to face Waverly, she knew it fell flat and Waverly looked more than a little hurt.

Ideally Nicole would talk it out, but they really didn’t have the time. They were already well behind schedule.

“We should get ready,”

Nicole tried to get up again, and this time Waverly didn’t stop her. She needed to get to the hotel, once she was busy helping Dolls get ready, she would be distracted and that’s exactly what she needed.

The apartment was empty by the time Waverly got out of the shower, Nicole had already left and Waverly couldn’t say she was surprised really. She had left a note which made her smile, it was of little consolation though.

She was doing it again.

She was running away from something she wanted so badly because she was scared. Scared of what Wynonna might think, what Gus might think, what every damn guest at the wedding might think.

She knew she shouldn’t care what they thought…last night should have cemented that. If Nicole wanted to kiss her in public then that had to mean that for her, this was more than just an “in the heat of the moment” thing.

Waverly knew it was more than that for her…

Just get through the ceremony. Then she could face whatever this was with Nicole. 

If she knew that this was something _real_ then maybe her fears would feel minuscule in comparison to the potential that lay ahead of them.

After a sincere apology to Alice and countless more to Wynonna from the porch, Waverly was allowed into the Homestead. Wynonna didn’t seem entirely satisfied but once Waverly reminded her of the time, she didn’t have much of a choice.

Waverly did wonder if a night of unbelievable sex would be a valid excuse for tardiness in Wynonna’s eyes…she had a feeling it might be if it was _her_ but it probably would not be good enough for Waverly.

While Wynonna begun the process of getting herself ready, Waverly helped Alice get washed and into her dress. She begged her to keep it clean, no eating, no juice, no crayons before they left the house.

“Watch as much TV as you want!” Waverly kissed Alice’s forehead and she skipped through to the living room with a wide smile.

“It seems my niece has forgiven me…” Waverly smiled awkwardly at her sister as she crept into her bedroom, keeping her distance just in case Wynonna decided to throw something at her. “I really am sorry.”

Wynonna raised an eyebrow at her through the mirror she was using to do her hair, “It’s not like you to break a promise, Waves…especially to her.”

“Would it make a difference if I said I had a _really_ good excuse for sleeping through my alarm?”

“Maybe…are you going to tell me what it is?” Wynonna was beginning to struggle pinning up the back of her hair, and Waverly quickly crossed the room to take over.

Waverly didn’t answer right away, the fear mounting all over again. She took a deep breath, if she didn’t answer soon Wynonna would only have more questions. “Soon…I promise.”

“Fine…but only because it’s _my_ wedding day and if we get into this then today will be all about you!” The playful roll of her eyes had Waverly thinking that maybe Wynonna had some idea how difficult whatever was on her mind was for her to reveal.

Waverly kissed Wynonna’s cheek once she’d finished her hair, “Thank you, I’m going to get ready. Call me when you need me to zip you up!” 

  
According to Dolls, Wynonna didn’t believe in the whole superstition of the groom seeing the bride before the wedding, but he did.

Which meant Nicole had the job of standing out front, awaiting the arrival of the three Earp girls. Nicole thought it was sweet honestly, Dolls didn’t want to have to take his eyes off Wynonna for a second once he saw her in her dress.

Despite the way she and Waverly had parted, Nicole couldn’t wait to see her again. The glimpse she got of Waverly’s dress for today, while Waverly was showering earlier, had Nicole absolutely desperate to see her in it. It looked perfect hanging on the back of her bedroom door, but she knew it would be even more so once it was gracing Waverly’s frame.

The rented town car pulled up, Alice popped out first looking absolutely adorable and so damn excited as she waved over to her that Nicole couldn’t fight the grin that blossomed on her face. Waverly followed, and Nicole’s heart just about stopped.

Waverly was a _vision_ and the shy smile she directed towards Nicole before ducking her head made it clear she was doing an awful job of hiding her adoration.

Not wanting to push it after their conversation that morning, once Waverly’s attention returned to her, she simply mouthed “wow”. Waverly blushed beautifully as she turned back to help Wynonna out of the car.

Clearly not one for convention, Wynonna had opted for a gorgeous crimson wedding dress, and Nicole had to say she had no idea why Wynonna would _ever_ wear white when she looked that good in red.

Without a particularly religious element to the ceremony, it went by much faster than Nicole thought it would. It was perfect though and getting to see how incredibly happy her best friend looked before he slid the ring onto his new wife’s finger would be something Nicole remembered for a long time.

Throughout the vows, Nicole and Waverly kept catching each other’s eye from their positions across from one another. Nicole tried desperately to apologise for the pressure she had put on her that morning with each fleeting glance, and prayed that Waverly understood.

Nicole had simply wanted Waverly for so long…the idea that what they had shared wasn’t real was just too hard to accept. She realised now though that pushing Waverly before she was ready could result in the complete opposite of her desired outcome.

She made the decision to keep a polite distance, at least until people were engrossed in the revelry of the wedding reception. Nicole thankfully was sat two seats over from Waverly while they ate, and any temptation to leave a lingering touch on an arm or thigh was kept to a minimum.

As Wynonna and Dolls headed out onto the dancefloor and Gus kept a strong hold on Alice, who seemed desperate to join them for their first dance, Nicole drifted closer and closer to Waverly.

“You look exquisite,” Nicole leaned over Waverly’s shoulder to speak the words into her ear, hopeful that it would be alright considering everyone else’s attention was currently elsewhere.

“Thank you,” Waverly turned her head to give Nicole a bashful smile, her eyes dipped down to Nicole’s lips and it took every single ounce of her self-control not to lean in to capture Waverly’s. “You’re not looking so bad yourself.”

Their eyes lingered on each other until the music began to play and Waverly’s eyes drifted to her sister. Nicole kept watching her though; the pure happiness on her face as she watched Wynonna and Dolls was just too perfect a sight to miss.

As the couple’s chosen song came to an end, and with it, Wynonna and Dolls’ first dance as a married couple, other couples were invited onto the dancefloor. One by one, couples filtered in and began to dance together to the up-tempo song.

Nicole smiled sadly at the sight, it was lovely, but she couldn’t help but be a little jealous.

“Dance with me?”

Waverly instantly had Nicole’s attention, her hand was held out for Nicole’s and despite the nervous flutter to her voice, she looked sure of herself. Nicole just stared at her, was this what she really wanted?

“Please?”

Nicole wasn’t going to wait for her to ask again. She took Waverly’s hand, then her waist once they were on the dance floor. Waverly draped her arms around Nicole’s neck, getting far closer than Nicole had expected her to.

“I guess it is tradition, the best man and maid of honor sharing a dance…” Nicole kept scanning the room, waiting for someone to look at them, or more importantly, Waverly.

Nicole didn’t want this to be over any time soon and if Waverly got scared or felt judged, it would be.

“That’s not why I asked you to dance.” Waverly began to play with the loose hairs at the back of Nicole’s neck as their eyes remained locked on each other.

Nicole raised an eyebrow, her fingers twitched before she risked smoothing her hands around to the small of Waverly’s back.

“No?” Nicole didn’t want to get her hopes up…it was hard as Waverly pressed herself even closer and lifted herself up onto the balls of her feet though.

Waverly smiled wide, she pulled Nicole down towards her lips and held her there. “Nope.”

Without a moment of hesitation, Waverly eliminated the space between them and kissed Nicole so fiercely she nearly tripped over her own feet. 

For a split second, Nicole’s brain tried to give her every possible reason that Waverly might be doing this that wasn’t simply because she wasn’t afraid anymore. As Waverly’s tongue brushed against her top lip however, she wasn’t sure she cared.

“Wow…” Nicole was positively beaming as she rested her forehead against Waverly’s, she looked as unbelievably happy as Nicole felt and Nicole had to lean in for another kiss.

“God dammit!” Wynonna’s shout broke them out of their bubble.

They looked round to see her reaching into her bra and pulling out a twenty-dollar bill, which she handed to a _very_ smug looking Dolls.

“What just happened?” Waverly placed her hands on her hips once she’d retracted them from around Nicole’s neck. She levelled a not-very-convincing glare between Wynonna and Dolls, but Wynonna did look a little scared. “Were you betting on something?”

“Yeah…you guys,” Wynonna admitted with a pout. Dolls quickly pressed a kiss to her cheek after sliding the crisp bill into his front pocket. _“Apparently_ Dolls knows Nicole better than I know my own sister!”

Nicole had to laugh at Dolls’ nonchalant shrug, she could still tell how proud of himself he was. She had honestly been surprised that he hadn’t seemed to notice Nicole’s infatuation with the younger Earp sister…Nicole had wrongly assumed he was perhaps too focused on his own wedding to see it.

“Just go back to being gross!” Wynonna rolled her eyes, but there was a playful smile on her face and Nicole squeezed Waverly’s waist to make sure she noticed.

“We will,” Waverly quickly had her arms around Nicole’s neck again and walked her backwards across the dancefloor.

There was a confidence that, while steadily growing since they had stepped out to dance together, now had Waverly absolutely glowing. Nicole wasn’t sure she had ever been so attracted to her and there was a question she had to ask, before she fell any deeper into this.

“This is _something,_ right?”

“Yes,” Waverly replied quickly, not a trace of doubt in her eyes. “This is something.”

“Good,” Nicole pulled Waverly in close as the music slowed. She guided Waverly to turn her head and let it rest against Nicole’s chest, their hands clasped tightly between them.

Nicole leaned in close, close enough that only Waverly would hear her. “’Cause the things I planned to do to you tonight, would have been a real shame to waste that on nothing.”

Nicole felt Waverly’s breath catch, her fingers gripped Nicole more firmly and she let out a barely restrained moan that Nicole felt tremble through her chest. She grinned to herself as she leaned down, Waverly turned her head just enough for Nicole’s lips to find the skin behind her ear and she savoured the shiver it sent through Waverly.

Of course, there were things they would need to discuss, like how they were going to make this work when they lived hours apart and Waverly had a business to run, but tonight Nicole wouldn’t focus on that. She had far more important things to focus on.

**Author's Note:**

> If you feel so inclined, you can follow me on Twitter [@JNSbeth](https://twitter.com/JNSbeth)  
> 


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